== — FLAME ACT OF 2009 ==
This title may be cited as the ``Federal Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement Act of 2009´´ or ``FLAME Act of 2009´´.
(a) .—
In this section:
(1) F.—
The term “Federal land” means—
(A) public land, as defined in section 103 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (43 U.S.C. 1702);
(B) units of the National Park System;
(C) refuges of the National Wildlife Refuge System;
(D) land held in trust by the United States for the benefit of Indian tribes or members of an Indian tribe; and
(E) land in the National Forest System, as defined in section 11(a) of the Forest and Rangeland Renewable Resources Planning Act of 1974 (16 U.S.C. 1609(a)).
(2) F.—
The term “FLAME Fund” means a FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund established by subsection (b).
(3) R.—
The term “relevant congressional committees” means the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Natural Resources, and the Committee on Agriculture of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and the Committee on Indian Affairs of the Senate.
(4) S.—
The term “Secretary concerned” means—
(A) the Secretary of the Interior, with respect to—
(i) Federal land described in subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (D) of paragraph (1); and
(ii) the FLAME Fund established for the Department of the Interior; and
(B) the Secretary of Agriculture, with respect to—
(i) National Forest System land; and
(ii) the FLAME Fund established for the Department of the Agriculture.
(b) .—
There is established in the Treasury of the United States the following accounts:
(1) The FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund for the Department of the Interior.
(2) The FLAME Wildfire Suppression Reserve Fund for the Department of Agriculture.
(c) .—
The FLAME Funds shall be available to cover the costs of large or complex wildfire events and as a reserve when amounts provided for wildfire suppression and Federal emergency response in the Wildland Fire Management appropriation accounts are exhausted.
(d) .—
(1) C.—
A FLAME Fund shall consist of the following:
(A) Such amounts as are appropriated to that FLAME Fund.
(B) Such amounts as are transferred to that FLAME Fund under paragraph (5).
(2) A.—
(A) A.—
There are authorized to be appropriated to the FLAME Funds such amounts as are necessary to carry out this section.
(B) C.—
It is the intent of Congress that, for fiscal year 2011 and each fiscal year thereafter, the amounts requested by the President for a FLAME Fund should be not less than the amount estimated by the Secretary concerned as the amount necessary for that fiscal year for wildfire suppression activities of the Secretary that meet the criteria specified in subsection (e)(2)(B)(i).
(C) S.—
It is the sense of Congress that for fiscal year 2011 and each fiscal year thereafter—
(i) amounts appropriated to a FLAME Fund in excess of the amount estimated by the Secretary concerned as the amount necessary for that fiscal year for wildfire suppression activities of the Secretary that meet the criteria specified in subsection (e)(2)(B)(i) should be designated as amounts necessary to meet emergency needs;
(ii) the Secretary concerned should promptly make a supplemental request for additional funds to replenish the FLAME Fund if the Secretary determines that the FLAME Fund will be exhausted within 30 days; and
(iii) funding made available through the FLAME Fund should be used to supplement the funding otherwise appropriated to the Secretary concerned for wildfire suppression and Federal emergency response in the Wildland Fire Management appropriation accounts.
(3) A.—
Amounts in a FLAME Fund shall remain available to the Secretary concerned until expended.
(4) N.—
The Secretary concerned shall notify the relevant congressional committees if the Secretary estimates that only 60 days worth of funds remain in the FLAME Fund administered by that Secretary.
(5) T.—
If a FLAME Fund has insufficient funds, the Secretary concerned administering the other FLAME Fund may transfer amounts to the FLAME Fund with insufficient funds. Not more than $100,000,000 may be transferred from a FLAME Fund during any fiscal year under this authority.